Help Mallery Thurlow's Foundation Help the Haitian People

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The following was taken from an article on Mlive.com about Mallery Thurlow:

Mallery Thurlow, 21, graduated from Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids Michigan with majors in business administration and Bible and went straight to work for the foundation she founded and runs, called Haiti Foundation Against Poverty.

Under her direction, the foundation has built two elementary schools and also a sponsorship program, where $30 a month provides a child's education, food and clothing. She distributes food, brings in medical care and is raising funds to build a health clinic. On the horizon: production of a calorie-rich peanut butter invented by a French scientist to nourish starving children called "Plumpy Nut".

Thurlow is a mix of tenderhearted humanitarian and unwavering tough girl. She met with armed gang members in Haiti and made a deal: she'd get their children educated if they'd give up their weapons. "They agreed," she says. Now, they volunteer at her school.

"She doesn't see brick walls -- she sees fences she can leap over to make things happen," says Kim Chapin, a 52-year-old kindergarten teacher who supports Thurlow's foundation and traveled to Haiti with her in June. Chapin tells how Thurlow skillfully faced down gang members in an area of Haiti the United Nations lists among the world's most dangerous places. "These were dangerous people, and Mallery told them, 'Look, we're here to help you, but if we don't feel safe, we'll never come back again.' She laid down the law."

Thurlow readily shows photos of starving children, ramshackle houses constructed of trash, streets filled with sewage. But when she talks about the devastating need in Haiti, she isn't overly emotional. She doesn't lay on guilt to get donations. She's straightforward, matter of fact.

She plops a piece of "dirt cookie" on the kitchen table in her small apartment. The gray shard clinks, like a piece of pottery. "This is what they eat," she says. "It's dirt, salt and lard." The price for one has risen to an out-of-reach 20 cents, she notes. "There were food riots going on in the street, tires burning. Because people can't even afford to eat dirt. Doctors are examining sick children and finding their stomachs full of dirt.

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Wow....what a thought.....they can't even afford to eat dirt. Unimaginable......

What about now? Well, you can go to Mallery's website link above and find out what you can do to help. This was taken from the homepage of the Haiti Foundation Against Poverty's website:

"Our goal is to raise $225,000 to bring a stable, prefabricated structure to Port-au-Prince as soon as possible. This will serve as a base for medical relief and food preparation during the day and lodging during the night until this crisis has passed, at which point it this building will serve as the foundation of our permanent orphanage".

Want to help? Click here: HELP Haiti!